Witnessed by: Western
Wood avens (Geum urbanum), of the Rosaceae family. Modest perennial with pinnate basal leaves and small five-petalled yellow flowers; native range: hedgerows and woodland edges throughout Europe. Globally recognized as herb bennet, colewort, clove root in English. The part used is root and rhizome, sometimes the whole herb. Root scented of cloves from its eugenol, astringent and warmly aromatic.
In this cross-tradition database, we analyze how this substance operates across world medicine systems — tracking its traditional tastes, temperatures, tissue affinities, post-digestive effects, and planetary correspondences across Ayurveda, Unani, and Western herbalism.
WOOD AVENS
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- wood avens
- Scientific name
- Geum urbanum L.
- Family
- Rosaceae
Form
- Part used
- root and rhizome, sometimes the whole herb
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- Western
- astringent · aromatic
Temperature
- Western
- warm, drying
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- Western
- bowels · intestines · stomach · mucous membranes
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- Western
- astringent, antidiarrhoeal, aromatic tonic, styptic, febrifuge, antiseptic
Cautions
- Contraindications
- none noted in normal use
- Toxicity
- non-toxic in customary doses
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